1020 Schools' Meals Disrupted by Second Wave of Irregular Workers' Strike

On the 2nd, non-regular school workers responsible for meals and care, who have entered their second general strike demanding improved treatment, were at Ahyeon Elementary School in Mapo-gu, Seoul, where students ate bread, rice cakes, juice, and other substitute meals prepared for them. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Sun-mi] Educational public service workers engaged in school meals and childcare duties have entered a second strike demanding wage increases, causing gaps in meal services and childcare across schools.

According to the Ministry of Education on the 2nd, amid the implementation of full in-person classes, 7,503 workers, accounting for 4.4% of the total 168,616 educational public service workers, participated in the strike organized by the School Irregular Workers Solidarity Conference (Hakbi Yeondae). As a result of this strike, meal services were suspended in 1,020 schools, representing 8.2% of the 12,403 schools nationwide that operate meal programs.

There were also gaps in childcare. Among 12,402 classrooms in 6,052 elementary schools operating childcare rooms, 227 classrooms, or 1.8%, were unable to provide childcare services.

Hakbi Yeondae demanded an increase in seniority allowances, abolition of the cap, and improvement of welfare discrimination (holiday leave pay) for educational public service workers, and warned that a third general strike could soon be held.

In response, the Korea Federation of Teachers' Associations (Kyotong), a conservative teachers' organization, announced it would launch a nationwide teachers' legislative petition campaign to prevent a childcare and meal strike crisis and to reduce teachers' administrative burdens.